Ferrari Crash Driver Gets Year in Jail

A 20-year-old Huntington Beach man is serving a one-year jail sentence for his guilty plea to a Christmas Eve 2009 Ferrari crash in Newport Beach that killed his cousin and injured two others, according to court records.

Luicci Nader was scheduled to appear in court Thursday, but his hearing was moved up to Jan. 17 when he accepted a plea deal from Orange County Superior Court Judge Steven Bromberg, Deputy District Attorney Alison Gyves said.

Nader pleaded guilty to felony vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and admitted two sentencing enhancements for causing great bodily injury, according to court records.

Bromberg placed Nader on five years of probation and ordered him to perform 1,000 hours of community service, according to court records. Gyves said he objected to the plea agreement because she thought Nader should have received more time behind bars. Nader could have faced up to 12 years in prison if he were convicted at trial, Gyves said.

Nader was recklessly driving and speeding between 80 to 100 mph in his parents' 2008 Ferrari on Pacific Coast Highway about 5 p.m. on Dec. 24, 2009, when he lost control of the sports car, said Deputy District Attorney Susan Price, who was prosecuting the case before Gyves. The Ferrari veered over the raised center median into oncoming traffic, where it slammed into a truck, Price said. The force of the collision was so powerful it split the Ferrari in two and the car burst into flames, Price said.

Nader's 24-year-old cousin, Ralph Abinader, who was in the passenger seat, was pronounced dead at the scene, Price said. The two were on their way to a family Christmas party. Cole Putnam, the 54-year-old driver of the truck, and his passenger, Linda Langgle, suffered serious injuries, Price said.

-City News Service